“Both,” Mack said. “Please.”
Lisa stood up. “I’m in my robe. I’d better change.”
Mack said softly, “Don’t change. I like you in your robe.”
Together they went down to the kitchen. Lisa scrambled eggs with cheddar cheese and chives from her garden while Mack poured them each a glass of wine. She toasted bread, spread it with butter, and set it on the table with an open jar of Nantucket blueberry jam. As they ate, they discussed the past few hours, the frightening flood that had shocked them all. What the flood forecast for the future of this island with the seas licking at the shores.
“Lisa.” Mack left his chair and drew Lisa up out of hers. “Let’s forget the floods for a while. Let’s give ourselves a few moments to be happy. I found you. I love you. We’re going into the future together. Right?”
“Right,” Lisa agreed. She kissed him, then stepped back. “Do you know what I’d like to do right now?”
“I know what I’d like to do right now,” Mack said in a growl.
Lisa laughed. “I’d like for us to look at my photo album.”
“What?”
“Well, I’m so very very old that I have actual photo albums, and I’d love for us to look at them together. I think maybe you’ll have a better idea of who I was, who I’ve become, if you see them.”
“Okay. I get that, kind of. But remember, you and I have lived on this island for decades.”
“True. But we didn’t hang out together. And I was different back then. You were, too.” She pulled him by the hand into the living room, settled him on the sofa, and went to the bottom shelf of the bookcase to pull out three heavy leather-back albums. She put them on the table and sat next to Mack.
“What’s this?” Mack asked when she opened the first album.
“This,” Lisa said, “is my first wedding. Well, my only wedding so far.”
“It doesn’t look very…fancy. You guys must not have had much money.”
Lisa laughed. “We had enough money for an extravagant wedding, believe me. But Erich was in a hurry, and his parents were in another country, and Erich thought that weddings were sort of provincial especially when we were going to change the world…”
Mack peered down at the photos, turning the pages. “You were beautiful.”
Lisa smiled.
“I mean, you still are, but, wow, Lisa. Where were you married?”
“In my parents’ house. With only my friend Rachel in attendance. I didn’t even have a special dress. That was my ‘dressy’ dress that I wore to church and certain events.”
Lisa leaned back against the sofa while Mack flipped through the pages. “Where did you marry Marla?”
“Here on the island, in the small chapel of the Congregational Church. It wasn’t elaborate, either. We didn’t have much money, and we needed it for rent. Marla’s mother made her wedding dress.” Mack chuckled. “Marla said she looked like a polar bear.” He chuckled again. “She kind of did.”
“It makes me sad thinking of my wedding,” Lisa told him.
Mack took Lisa’s hand in his own big hand. “Well, then, why don’t we have a spectacular wedding and a great big blowout party for the reception?”
“What a wonderful idea, Mack! Flowers, music, and we could fill the church. I’d love to wear a real wedding dress…but would you wear a tux?”
“For you, I’d wear almost anything. Please note the almost.”
“I promise, no blue velvet. We could have a band for the reception. A live band…do you dance?”
“I do. My own way. Please don’t make me take cha-cha-cha lessons.”
Lisa squealed with laughter at the thought. She drew her legs up, sat on her knees on the sofa, facing him. “We could have the full deal. A sit-down dinner! Champagne for everyone! Cool take-home gifts.”
“No ice sculpture.”
“No. No ice sculpture.”
“Juliet and Beth could be my bridesmaids…if you think Beth would like to.”
“And Theo could be my best man.” Mack sobered. “Being realistic, Lisa, we’re old enough to have the money for a party like this, but we certainly don’t have the time to make all the arrangements this summer. Or even this fall. Or not until January, if we want to do it right.”
Lisa slid off her knees and sat naturally. Actually, she realized, she couldn’t sit on her knees comfortably anymore. When had that happened? “You’re right, Mack. But really, January would be more fun. You and I are working straight-out in the summer and fall. Then Christmas makes us all crazy busy. So we can’t plan an extravagant wedding for the summer even if we needed to, and we don’t need to.”
Mack wrapped an arm around her, pulling her against him. “So we’ll plan for January. But I’ll want to give you an engagement ring before then.”
“Oh,” Lisa sighed. “I would like to have an engagement ring I can keep.”
Mack leaned toward Lisa, lifted her face toward his, and kissed her slowly and softly.
The back door opened and shut.
“Mom? You home?” Theo called.
“We’re in the living room,” Lisa called back. She whispered to Mack, “We need to visit that spec house again.”
Theo came into the room and Beth was with him. They were holding hands and they were both glowing.
“Hi, Mom,” Theo said.
“Hi, Dad,” Beth said.
Their parents said hello, and for once Mack kept his arm around Lisa, holding her close to him.
thirty-four
Theo was glad to see his mom with Mack because she looked so happy. He hoped that would keep Mack calm when he and Beth broke the news to her father that they wanted to move in together.
Beth was her normal cheerful self. She went over and kissed Mack’s cheek.
“Daddy, I’m sorry I was so cranky and unpleasant the other day.”
“Don’t worry,” Mack said. “I’m just glad you’re safe.”
Theo kissed his mom’s cheek. He and Beth sat in separate chairs facing the sofa.
“Was that storm crazy or what?” he asked.
“Theo rescued me!” Beth said. “Dad, he was amazing!” She launched into a dramatic description of the wave, her fall, her realization that she was going to drown, and Theo’s sudden appearance, and his strength carrying her up and out of the water. It was all true, it had all happened, but Theo felt uncomfortable in the spotlight.